Westminster School

Westminster School (in full, The Royal College of St. Peter at Westminster, but almost always referred to as Westminster School, or even just Westminster, for short) is an ancient English public school, located by Westminster Abbey in Westminster, in central London, and with a history stretching back to the 12th century. Its A-level results over many of the past 20 years, including both 2004 and 2005, have been the highest in the country. The Head Master up to July 2005 was Tristram Jones-Parry, who has been replaced by Dr. Stephen Spurr.

History

The School originally became a public school (and so available to all members of the public, provided that they could pay for tuition costs) in 1179, as the educational part of the Roman Catholic Abbey at Westminster, the Benedictine monks being required to provide a small charity school by decree of Pope Alexander III. Parts of the School's buildings date back to the eleventh century, and it is quite likely that the first schoolboys were taught by the monks even before then.

Related Topics:
1179 - Roman Catholic Abbey at Westminster - Benedictine - Pope Alexander III

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However, this arrangement changed in 1540, when King Henry VIII ordered the dissolution of the Monasteries of the Catholic Church in England, but personally ensured the School's survival by his royal charter. The College of St. Peter carried on with forty "King's Scholars" funded from the royal purse. Although during Queen Mary I's brief reign the Abbey was reinstated as a Roman Catholic monastery, it was redissolved on Queen Elizabeth I's accession, and neither of these events had a major impact on the School.

Related Topics:
1540 - King Henry VIII - Catholic Church - England - Queen Mary I - Roman Catholic - Queen Elizabeth I

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Elizabeth I formally refounded the School, this time as a separate body, in 1560, with new statutes to select 40 Queen's Scholars from the boys who had already attended the school for a year. This date is now generally taken as the date that the school was "founded", although final independence from the Abbey was only achieved with the Public Schools Act 1868.

Related Topics:
1560 - Public Schools Act 1868

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In 1943, Westminster Under School was formed as a semi-separate entity for the teaching of day pupils from the ages of 8 to 13 (now 7 to 13). The current headmaster of the Under School is Mr. Jeremy Edwards. Originally situated in Little Dean's Yard (the main square of the School, off Dean's Yard), it later took residence in Vincent Square, overlooking the School's playing fields.

Related Topics:
1943 - Dean's Yard - Vincent Square

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In 1967, the first girl pupil was admitted to the School, with girls becoming full members of the (Upper) School from 1973 onwards.

Related Topics:
1967 - 1973

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In 1970 John Rae took over as headmaster from John Carleton , cutting a distinctive and singular figure and for a time becoming the highest-profile media commentator on education matters of the day. In the early 1970s he abolished Westminster's longstanding tradition of the Seventh Form, a final year or two of study for the highest-flying students who had already taken fast-tracked A levels at 16 or 17, devoted exclusively to preparation for Oxbridge scholarships. Rae argued it left the school unbalanced and uncompetitive, while others argued his change served partly to diminish Westminster's unparalelled tradition of scholarship in the Classics. It remains a specialism of the school but not to the earlier degree, while the school's overall academic position was boosted.

Related Topics:
1970 - John Rae - John Carleton - 1970s - A levels - Oxbridge - Rae - Classics

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In 1979, the school was the subject of a then unprecedented BBC documentary by Mary Rose-Richards, Edward Mirzoeff and Jonathan Gili entitled "Public School", still unmatched in its wholly unrestricted access to a public school.

Related Topics:
1979 - BBC - Documentary

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